Saint Arnold announces Divine Reserve 10

The recipe for the beer will be provided by the winner of the Big Batch Brew Bash, the annual Houston homebrew fest that claims to be the largest single-style festival in country.

Brock Wagner, owner of Saint Arnold and who started as a homebrewer, says, “We look forward to giving the winner a taste of what making beer for a living is really like – from mashing to pouring hops into the kettle to cleaning up and, of course sampling for quality control.”

World’s biggest single-style homebrewing competition to pick best English Barleywine

HOUSTON, May 12, 2010 – The brew crew at Saint Arnold Brewing Company, Texas’ oldest craft brewery, is taking more than a passing interest in the 15th Annual Big Batch Brew Bash this weekend. The English Barleywine selected as Best of Show will inspire the recipe for Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 10, the brewery’s highly coveted series of small batch beers.

The Big Batch Brew Bash is the largest single-style homebrewing competition. The winning English Barleywine chosen from among the approximately 100 entrants will be invited to Saint Arnold’s new brewery on the north side of downtown Houston as Brewer for a Day.

“We look forward to giving the winner a taste of what making beer for a living is really like – from mashing to pouring hops into the kettle to cleaning up and, of course sampling for quality control,” said Brock Wagner, who got his start as a homebrewer before establishing Saint Arnold Brewing nearly 16 years ago. “Craft brewing came from homebrewing and we love to build on the connection.”

English Barleywines are big and malty beers. They are rich, complex and tend to have a balance toward sweetness with a caramel-like aroma and a full-bodied and chewy mouthfeel. Many of the entrants in the Big Batch Brew Bash have been aging for many months. According to the style guidelines from the Beer Judge Certification Program, the English Barleywine typically features English hops and rich specialty malt flavors.

This will be the fifth time the winning recipe in the Big Batch Brew Bash was used to inspire a release of Saint Arnold Divine Reserve. Previous Big Batch Brew Bash winners inspired the following:

– 2009: Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 8, Scotch Ale

– 2008: Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 7, Weizenbock

– 2007: Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 5, Russian Imperial Stout

– 2006: Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 3, Double IPA

The Saint Arnold Divine Reserve series is known for its small batches of high-quality, full-flavored beer. Each new batch features a unique recipe and is distinguished from its predecessors by the batch number on the neck label. Wagner says Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 10 is expected to be released in September.

Sanctioned by the American Homebrewers Association and organized by the Kuykendahl Gran Brewers, the 15th Annual Big Batch Brew Bash is the biggest single style brewing competition in the world. In addition to Saint Arnold Brewing, supporters include DeFalco’s Home Wine & Beer Supplies and Brew It Yourself.

The judging and awards ceremony will be held at Saint Arnold Brewery on Sunday May 16th starting at 1 p.m.

About Saint Arnold Brewing Company

Saint Arnold Brewing’s ten brews are made and sold by the company’s staff of 24 dedicated employees. The brewery was listed by USA Today as one of the “10 great places to see what’s brewing in beer.” It is located at 2000 Lyons Avenue and its brewery tour and tasting is offered every weekday at 3:00 P.M. and Saturdays starting at 11 A.M. For more information on Saint Arnold’s five year-round and five seasonal beers as well as root beer, log on to www.saintarnold.com.